Book excerpt: "The rapid commercialization of the Internet and success of online direct marketing led to the burgeoning field of business-to-business e-commerce, a growing industry analyzed with the most recent research developments and successful implementation strategies in this business volume. E-commerce environments, supply chain management issues, and value chain networks are explored with respect to process, research, and electronic tendering. More complex discussions of classification schemes, manufacturing connectedness, and structuration theory provide the academic dimension of the practical business challenges presented."